Passenger with Down syndrome, family kicked off Alaska Airlines flight after he 'threw up a little,' relative says

A family was kicked off an Alaska Airlines flight when a passenger with Down syndrome vomited slightly, a relative says.

Meaghan Hess, who is a third-year law student, told NBC News that her brother and others in the family were trying to get from St. Louis to Seattle on Monday when the incident took place. Hess said she was not on the plane.

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"After boarding the flight, Patrick threw up a little and the airline workers kicked my family off the flight," Hess told NBC News.

Hess said the airline arranged a flight the following morning, but that did not prevent the family from being stranded at the airport for "nearly 11 hours."

"Instead, all they did was hand my parents a black garbage bag, saying that my brother could just throw up in that," Hess said.

A passenger with Down syndrome and his family were kicked off an Alaska Airlines flight after he vomited slightly. (Meaghan Hess via Twitter @hessybaby93)

"It's not just about getting kicked off but the terrible treatment after the fact," she told the Daily News.

Hess, a staffer for the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, told NBC News that the airline's treatment was "disability discrimination."

"I can't help but think if a non-disabled child that threw up, would the airline have kicked that family off the flight," she told the network.

"I'm truly sorry for your family's experience," an official with Alaska Airlines told Hess in a Twitter exchange.

"Safety of all passengers is our number one priority," the representative said. "I am glad to see that we re-booked them at no fee in the morning. I apologize that we cannot provide hotels in these situations."

The airline told the family that it could have been charged for the new flight, but was not as a courtesy.

Alaska Airlines apologized to the family after kicking them off a flight. (Ted S. Warren/AP)

Alaska Airlines said in a statement that it apologizes for the family's "difficult experience traveling with us."

"When a guest is actively ill prior to a flight, it is safer for them to be treated on the ground than in the air, where medical assistance is limited," read the statement. "In this case our guest's symptoms did not improve and we were concerned for his wellbeing. We understand that this change put the family in a difficult situation and have reached out to them. We strive to be our best for every guest, every time."